Back to the Books
Since I start law school again tomorrow,
following is a brief summary of the courses I'll be
taking, in case any of you are interested (if you
are, you probably won't be by the time you reach
the bottom of the page). The course load for the
first year is pretty standard, so it's typically
the same regardless of where you go to law school.
In addition to the following courses, I had
Criminal Law last semester. Since that class is now
out of the way, the course load for this semester
is lighter; but I hear the difficulty level for the
remaining subjects gets ratcheted up to
compensate.
Civil Procedure
I like to think of this course as learning the
rules of the game. The concepts we explore in
CivPro can be challenging to grasp. Try to imagine
learning how to play baseball without actually
playing the game—or watching it being played.
Some of the major topics in CivPro include
determining proper jurisdiction; the trial process,
from pre-trial pleadings to appeals; conflicts
between state and federal law; and many other
stimulating subjects. (As the title implies, this
course deals with civil suits, not criminal trials;
Criminal Procedure is a second-year course.)
Contracts
This course deals with how the law enforces
agreements. Among many other topics, we cover
contract formation and interpretation; breach of
contract and damages therefore; fraud; and much
more. This is by far the most theoretical of all my
courses, so it can sometimes be hard to get my
hooks into it. However, it'll be an important
foundational course if I end up going into any
kind of corporate or entertainment law field.
Lawyering Skills
While this course only counts as one credit, and is
graded Pass/Fail, most lawyers will tell you it's
one of the most important. As the title implies,
the course teaches skills for being a lawyer, such
as legal research and writing—the tools which
I'll use immediately upon graduating. This
semester, we will learn how to write an appellate
brief, then will present and argue the brief in
front of a mock judge.
Property
Most people consider this one of the hardest
courses. While I would agree that it's challenging,
I also find it the most interesting of my
first-year subjects. We deal with the rights and
obligations that arise out of property interests.
This semester, we'll delve into marital
interests/community property; leasehold estates
(landlord/tenant law); and land use issues.
Torts
This course explores the principles involved in
determining whether an injured person should be
compensated for harm caused by another, including
such topics as intentional harms, negligence, and
strict liability. Whenever you hear about
gargantuan jury awards in civil cases (such as
tobacco cases), it's generally a case involving
some kind of tort.
While this may all seem like really dry
material, especially for a creative person like me,
I do find much of it fascinating. I can't say
whether I'll truly enjoy practicing law, but I can
say that what I've learned about the law so far is
quite interesting. And there are many things one
can do with a law degree besides practicing law. My
biggest concern about law school right now is
managing the cost of law school....
©2003 Michael
Strickland ALL RIGHTS
RESERVED
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